The Google I/O keynote is just minutes away and the Google Play Store is already pushing some of the changes. The one I know most of you will love is the fact that the carrier unlocked HSPA+ version of the Galaxy Nexus just dropped its price dramatically. You can now order it for as low as $349.00 free of contract. They’re also showing off the new Jelly Bean wallpaper in the photo, which looks kind of cool. This will obviously get official in just a couple of minutes, so make sure you follow the live stream in our post.

Developing..

Source: Google Play

After wondering for months what Samsung’s SGH-T999 Android for T-Mobile might be, we recently started considering that it could represent the carrier’s version of the Galaxy S III. That’s far from confirmed at the moment, but it certainly seems like a decent possibility, considering both that we were expecting T999 to be quite the high-end device, and how it showed-up grouped with other GS3 models in a recent video. Even if we can cross that mystery off our lists, we’re far from done with identifying unknown phones, as some new evidence shows another similar [...]

Batteries are included inside all our smartphones and tablets, but most of us don’t pay much attention to them — not until we run out of juice.

Every phone includes the capacity of its battery somewhere on its spec sheet. A Nexus One includes a 1400mAh battery and a GSM Galaxy Nexus includes a 1750mAh battery. Both run at 3.7 volts.

In batteries, “pressure” is measured in voltage, the size of the jug is measured in amp-hours (or milliamp hours). If we compare electricity to water, milliamp hours (mAh), are analogous to the size of a water jug; [...]

If you’ve been following the news surrounding the new HTC One series, you already know that Sprint has opened pre-orders for its version of the One XL, the Evo 4G LTE. It’s a solidly-specced device with a popular brand name that promises to sell well. If you’ve been following the news very closely, however, you also know that it packs a disadvantage cleverly disguised as a feature: an embedded SIM. Which makes about as much sense as a cast-iron laptop: they both offer the same degree of convenience and portability.

Pictured: lame sauce masquerading as [...]

Google Wallet is Google’s payment processing system. There’s an online version and an Android app that runs on certain phones with specific hardware and lets you use your smartphone like a credit card.

In the past we’ve described Google Wallet as “the coolest app that you can’t have” because it’s been limited to a very few phones on only a couple carriers.

What have been the problems?

First of all, your phone has to have an NFC chip and a “secure element”. Today, not many phones have the necessary hardware, and [...]

Last month, we started seeing signs that an update to bring the phone up to Android 4.0.4 was on its way out to owners of the fully-unlocked HSPA+ version of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. At the time, there was no sign as to when owners of the LTE-enabled GNex on Verizon might find themselves in a similar position. We’re still without any sort of official confirmation, nor even mention of a date when the update might become available, but once again, there are some signs that it’s already started arriving, even if in a very limited way.

A number of owners of the Galaxy [...]

Last week, we heard that new owners of the Galaxy Nexus on Sprint were running into some unusual problems with data services, finding themselves unable to acquire a cellular data connection with their handsets. Luckily for them, Sprint quickly acknowledged the problem, and posted that a software update to resolve the issue would be forthcoming. While the carrier didn’t commit to a precise release schedule, it did note that the update would likely be available early this week. Sure enough, Sprint has now posted support documents for the update, which it says will be going out to [...]

With the NFC-enabled Google Wallet app arriving on more devices, more phones coming with NFC, and batteries not getting any bigger, is is safe to upgrade your battery? Given the fact that batteries in these phones have a message on them that indicate they include NFC inside the battery itself, can you you simply swap your battery? Will doing so make Google Wallet stop working? How does all this magical NFC stuff work, anyway?

We’ll answer that, and more, in today’s episode of the Android Guy Weekly!

What is NFC?

NFC, or Near Field Communication, is [...]

Last week, I wrote a piece about how notification LEDs on mobile devices were a dead art form. That editorial generated a lot of interesting discussion, and a recurring theme in the comments was the suggestion that I download a third-party app to better control my Android LED experience. Most mentioned of all was Light Flow, by Rage Consulting Limited. So I decided to give it a whirl.

A few points before we check the app out: I was only able to test the app on one Android device, a Verizon Galaxy Nexus running a stock build of ICS 4.0.2. Your experience may, and almost certainly [...]

Sprint just launched its version of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, and though its LTE network isn’t quite ready for prime time, new owners of the handset can get online with the carrier’s 3G network until 4G becomes available. At least, that’s the way thing were supposed to work, but apparently some users are running into a fair deal of trouble just getting the phone to connect over 3G.

A number of Galaxy Nexus owners have been posting to Sprint’s community forums with their tales of brand-new phones that just refuse to connect to cellular data. WiFi is [...]

If you are an Android fan and you somehow managed to resist the temptation of getting yourself the latest and greatest Nexus device made by Samsung, this might be just for you as eXpansys USA has a great deal on the phone.

It is unlocked and it goes for $399.99. If AT&T or T-Mobile are your flavors (or you’re an international user) then you might want to grab this opportunity; the price is pretty good! If you are buying your first Galaxy Nexus you might want to read our review. As for the specs, you should know them by heart now: 4.65-inch HD Super AMOLED screen, [...]